TECHNICALLY SPEAKING
TruFirm Technology Goes Beyond Tournament Prep
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ruFirm, a system developed by the United States Golf Association (USGA), is a valuable tool that allows golf course superintendents to measure and analyze the relative firmness of various playing surfaces on the golf course. It is simply a hammer system where you raise the handle and drop it and the measured depth of indentation (in inches) is stored in a hand-held computer with GPS. This information can be uploaded to a PC for further analysis. The hammer force is supposed to emulate a 7 or 8 iron shot from roughly 150 yards from the green. The USGA has been using TruFirm to gauge the firmness of putting surfaces, fairways, and bunker sands at every U.S. Open since 2005.
In most cases we put a lot of effort into managing the organic content of our greens with frequent aeration, verticutting and topdressing while not implementing the same program on the approaches. TruFirm would be an excellent gauge to measure progress in this area. However, in certain cases, the receptiveness of a green may have little to do with green firmness, and may be more result of course design. For instance, golfers hitting from a downhill slope and trying to stop the golf ball on the green that slopes away may look to blame the green’s firmness as opposed to the design. This situation can be confirmed with the TruFirm measurements to deflect criticism of course management.
Why Measure Firmness?
Taking Measurements
Similar to green speed, the firmness of a particular green or how receptive it is to shots, is usually a discussion point. No two golfers share the same opinion when it comes to firmness. Some will say, “Can we get them a little firmer?” While others may say they are “firm enough” or “too soft”. The ability to measure and quantify firmness takes away the guesswork and speculation of how firm or soft a particular playing surface is. It also allows for accurate measurements to be conducted and recorded over time to aid in monitoring progress in cultural programs. Moreover, firmness of approaches is something that is commonly overlooked. One of the tougher shots in golf is hitting to a front pin with a firm green that has a soft approach.
All the measurements are stored in the hand-held computer, so it’s easy to make your way around the course quickly because you do not need to write everything down on paper. On the data screen you would select date and time, then the hole number, then the area (whether it’s a green, tee, fairway, bunker or a custom area). A green, approach or other playing area is usually broken down into 9 data squares from front, middle, and back across left, middle
26 Green is Beautiful • Spring 2012
Handheld device eliminates tracking data with pen and paper